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2020 – Renewal, Values, Fulfilment

January is one of my favourite months….a month of renewal and excitement for the coming year. This year even more so as we enter a new decade. The possibilities, the adventures, achieving one’s vision. The year is as yet unwritten and holds hope and promise. We shouldn’t leave our year ahead to pan out for itself. Who knows where it will lead…could be good, but then again it could be bad. I like to have a hand in how my year will turn out, which is why I love to set myself challenges. I prefer to use the term ‘challenges’ as oppose to New Year resolutions or goals. I relish challenges, they awaken a fire in me that I refuse to allow to be put out. The term ‘goal’ does not have the same effect for some reason. A goal to me is a nice to have not a must-have. whatever you choose to call it, make sure your plans awaken a fire in you and spur you on to achieve them.

I often engage in ‘contemplating my naval’, getting to know myself and what I want. As part of this exercise, I often review my values and to see if I am truly living up to them. Values guide every aspect of your life…work, family, friendships, relationships, interests, actions, behaviour, world-views, interactions and more. Some of my core values are justice, equality, integrity, honesty, personal responsibility, personal development, empowerment, education, love, family, spirituality, passion, determination, financial freedom, health & fitness. Everything I do, and always have done, feeds these values. I didn’t realise it at the time but that is why I studied law and worked in child protection, joined the police service, led a minority staff support network, successfully coached and mentored staff and colleagues for promotion, worked as a consultant for the College of Policing on a national BME Progression Project, been a member of and regularly trained at gyms since I was 18, qualified as a fitness instructor and nutritionist, adopted my beautiful son, attained a Master’s degree, left the police and started my own business doing what I love and am so passionate about.

My tips for 2020 are;

Visualise your ideal life.
Examine your values. Are you living up to them? Is what you do supporting them? If not, do something about it. Not living our values can affect our mental health.
Find what you love to do if you don’t know already. What are you passionate about?
Live your passion. Make it part of your everyday life.
Set your challenges/goals/resolutions for the year ahead.
Underpin these challenges with realistic action plans. Review them regularly.
Visualise your ideal life, again, and again, and again to keep your focus on what you want to achieve.

Better still, compile a vision board. I started using vision boards in the last couple of years and I have found them so invaluable in keeping me focussed, especially when the world is full of distractions. It’s such an achievement to be able to tick the things I have achieved off through the year and see the vision accomplished. Those parts I haven’t yet accomplished but still intend to, I can carry forward (I’m not perfect…I sometimes get distracted and go off track!!), but there are few.

This is equally true for individuals as well as businesses. Most businesses have a mission and values statement. Is your business living up to it?

I absolutely love being a professional coach and a consultant inequality, leadership, motivation & resilience as I get to live my values every single day.

If you would like me to help you, or your business, to live your values and achieve fulfilment, please email me at;

[email protected]

Irene Afful MSc.
Founder & Director

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